My Real Children in The Alternative Worlds

May 24, 2014 Nicky rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, queer, received-to-review, historical-fiction-alternatehistory

So, first off: I am completely, utterly biased. Jo sent me a copy to review, I had my own pre-ordered copy several days before the book released, I love her work in general, and she's been great to me. This doesn't speak to me in the same way Among Others did, but all the same, it's wonderful. I love the way the two timelines are handled, and I love the way that last chapter brings things back into alignment. I love that I was thinking all along that I wasn't sure about the narration, and yet so So, first off: I am completely, utterly biased. Jo sent me a copy to review, I had my own pre-ordered copy several days before the book released, I love her work in general, and she's been great to me. This doesn't speak to me in the same way Among Others did, but all the same, it's wonderful. I love the way the two timelines are handled, and I love the way that last chapter brings things back into alignment. I love that I was thinking all along that I wasn't sure about the narration, and yet somehow it worked and brought me to tears.

The thing with the narration is, this is a short book to hold the sum of two lives. So at times the narration seems to summarise things that could have been interesting expanded. I wasn't sure for parts of it whether the emotional impact would still be there, but it is. In some places, it fits perfectly the way things happen: matter of fact, sudden, without announcing themselves first. I was thinking about whether I'd want it to be expanded, but I don't think I would. It would take away from the structure, the careful balance Jo builds.

I love the fact that this book is jammed full of people. Gay people, out and closeted both; unconventional relationships and love that doesn't colour between the lines; families, built and chosen; people with disabilities who conform to no stereotype; pacifists and campaigners; scientists; women making their way in a sexist world and pushing the boundaries... All of them are handled with respect and care for their stories.

The whole plot... I don't know how much is too much to give away, here. The final chapter just makes everything slide into place and come clear. You've got Pat/Trish living two separate lives, each with their own kinds of happiness and fulfillment. You think it's going to be simple to choose which one you'd prefer for her, and then if you just tilt to the head you can see why that wouldn't be the right choice.

And I don't know if anyone else felt this, coming to the last page, but I don't actually know which version of herself Patricia chooses. It looks like a straight-up choice between personal happiness and wider well-being, but the whole book shows us the importance of tiny actions by a single person. Trish is a person who takes care of other people, who sacrifices her own well-being for that: does Patricia choose to follow her path, because that's part of who she is? Pat is a person who focuses on her family, who loves art, who makes the world a better place, but who is ultimately quite insular: does Patricia choose to follow Pat, because that insularity is part of her too? Saying that she couldn't make any other choice only makes sense after she's chosen. ...more

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Oct 19, 2018 Kara Babcock rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, 2018-read, own, favourites, alternate-history, historical-fiction

OH. MY. GOD. WHY DID NONE OF YOU MAKE ME READ THIS BOOK SOONER???

I’ve previously read two of Jo Walton’s books. The first, Among Others , was a Hugo-nominated, Nebula-winning novel that I enjoyed but didn’t love. The second, Tooth and Claw , was a more straightforward story which was basically “what if Regency England was intelligent dragons” and, as such, was a delightfully clever romp of a book. My Real Children is a slow burn of simmering something else and it blew my mind backwards and ...more

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May 27, 2014 Sarah rated it really liked it

Shelves: speculative-fiction, alternate-history

Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous. I loved almost everything about this book. The deft imagining of two parallel timelines of the twentieth century, both different from our own, the vivid depictions of every character in both timelines, the ways in which Pat/Trish is different and the same. I basically read the whole book cover to cover yesterday. I had other things to do, but I couldn't put it down. I read the last several chapters with tears pouring down my face. I think it would have been a five s ...more

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May 20, 2014 Wealhtheow rated it liked it

Shelves: sci-fi, historical, disabled-character, queer-characters

Patricia is old, and has been progressively forgetting more and more. She expected to face dementia like her mother did, but she didn't expect to find herself half-remembering two different lives: one in which she married a schoolmate, another in which she became a travel author. Not only does she have two different personal lives, but the worlds diverged as well--in one, nuclear warfare is an intermittent danger, while in another the world is largely at peace and civil rights have made great st ...more

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May 02, 2016 Suz rated it it was amazing

Shelves: book-club, historical, non-men-sff-authors, science-fiction, award-winner, tiptree, amazeballs

I'm already a little pro-Jo biased, so take this for what it's worth.

This is a fantastically written story with two parallel alt-history timelines (and they're both alt-history from ours, but not unreasonably, crazily so). The book is 100% character driven, and pretty much the entire back third of the book had me in near tears.

Patricia/Patsy/Tricia/Pat/Trish remembers two different timelines - one where she is happier, but one where the world is better. And it all begins with a single choice. I ...more

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